I love my Typhon. It has become an integral part of my Digitakt/Digitone centerpiece. I was really bummed to find that my screen failed this past Saturday night. I purchased mine used off Reverb and it was beyond the one year warranty even if I was the original owner. I messaged Dreadbox support on Saturday night and had a response today, Monday morning. They are sending me a replacement screen at no cost, and I think that is pretty fantastic support for their device.
It’s always a bummer if something fails, but stuff happens. This will be a relatively quick fix and their response time and solution is top notch.
Guys does anybody use Typhon with Bitwig? Having pain sending Program Messages to the unit. The goal is to have patches recalled in the different projects. No luck for now. It’s all good in Ableton for example.
HaHa update - In order to do that on your HW synth track you need to add Program Change first, then click Chain button and add HW Instrument there. Wasn’t obvious for me.
After feeling kind of indifferent about my Typhon, I’ve started doing head-to-head tests with some of my other synths. Nothing formal, just trying to make roughly-similar patches. This set of tests is showing me just how good this instrument really is and how phenomenal it sounds. The ultimate test, of course, is actually doing all these things in a mix, but it has been fun. What I’ve learned so far:
Typhon vs Norand Mono:
NM is my most recent acquisition so this may be a bit unfair
I like Typhon more for resonant bass sounds/acid and plucks - the Typhon’s resonance sounds better
I like Mono slightly better for lead sounds and SFX, largely due to all the sources for added harmonics
Typhon is a bit easier to set up and navigate, and the built-in FX are more useful than I gave them credit for.
NM gets way wilder and the FM tones sound more interesting to me, but that’s not something I use particularly often
Typhon vs S-1:
Typhon has more natural movement in the oscillators, and in my opinion a fuller core sound, even when the S-1 is put into Unison mode
I prefer the Typhon for acidic bass sounds and harsher noises
I prefer the S-1 for stabs and warbly sounds
Typhon’s FX are a bit better (and way more varied)
S-1 is much easier and quicker to dial in a patch, I still find the sliders on Typhon too fiddly.
Microfreak in Mono or Unison mode:
Super waves on MF sound fantastic. Not nearly as beefy as Typhon for bass (but not as bad as some would say)
I prefer MF for leads, Typhon for bass
I prefer Typhon’s filter in all cases to MF’s LP filter
MF is just more fun to use overall
Syntakt Analog Machines:
Typhon raw oscs and filter sound a bit better(no surprise here)
I prefer Typhon for acid bass, though ST can hold its own in this category
I prefer Syntakt for leads and sustained bass - I often have to EQ/ filter the Typhon a bit to get it out of the way.
having the Elektron sequencer attached with P-locks means you get so much more than the raw tone, I can’t really separate the sound from the rest of the package.
Typhon vs Taiga
This one was really interesting. I realize a lot of this is about the nature of analog semimodular vs fixed-architecture with saved patches, but it’s also worth documenting/discussing. Overall I think Taiga is probably the best-sounding mono of the ones I’ve documented here, with Typhon a close second.
Taiga’s raw oscs are a little less ‘beefy’ than Typhon. 3 oscs with waveshaping means you get a lot more to play with compared to the 2 oscs with limited options on Typhon. Typhon oscs again have more natural “movement” by default, if that matters. Raw tone of both is excellent, though, and they complement each other well.
I like Taiga’s filter better. They both have their own character, this is pure preference. The resonance on Taiga gets less screechy, so I can crank it a bit harder without ruining the take. The LPG on Taiga offers a slightly different flavor, and using it in conjunction with the Filter is fun. Without doing any wild patching on Taiga, I’d say Typhon is a bit more aggressive. In my opinion, Taiga is a tiny bit more “liquid” by default.
Taiga takes 10-15 mins to warm up. Typhon is instantly in-tune. Also, bumping Taiga’s tuning knobs can cause havoc. I’m trying to keep this about sound, but I can’t ignore this. On the other hand, you can play 3-note chords on Taiga if you’re willing to set them up.
Patch memory is a godsend for times when you want to work on different tracks that use wildly different patches. Typhon wins here. Switching patches on Taiga can be a pain.
Taiga’s knobs vs Typhons fiddly sliders - some of Taiga’s knobs are also super fiddly, but I prefer them to the sliders being used for multiple functions/ slider-controlled menus of Typhon.
Typhon’s built-in FX are essential, and incredible. Taiga’s delay is useless as a delay, but can make an interesting, if limited, BBD chorus. I’d still rather just run it through a pedal or plugin though.
I’ve come to learn while doing all these tests that Typhon’s built-in FX are an essential part of the unit. They work so well with the Typhon’s raw sound and push it into even more interesting territory. This has been an extremely fun process, I highly recommend doing this yourself!
Follow up on my Typhon screen. As promised Dreadbox got me a new screen in under a month from Greece, which I thought was excellent. It took me no more than 10 minutes to swap it out and have it back in action again. Fantastic support and I am happy to have this back in my lineup.
I was thinking of making an h2h test with PRO 800 I just received. Anyway I want to keep Typhon, and use PRO 800 “polyphonically”…sounds good as bass too !
I pulled the trigger with a 2nd hand one. Well, 8 analog voices for that price ! I tried it with poor monitoring, but it sounded good enough to think I will probably keep it. No time for decent tests, maybe after I get fired from my boring job.
Sounds good as mono, isn’t it ?
Typhon is unique, it can be used standalone and bring you to totally unexpected areas. I won’t forget it…
I might have mentioned it before but my Typhon had an older serial number when I bought it, the PSU shorted out after a couple of months and Perfect Circuit swapped it for a newer one within a week. No problems since and I missed it every day it was gone. Of the monosynths I have (Implexus, Leipzig v3) this one is just as good as any of them.
Nice. You didn’t talk about Typhon built-in sequencer, that is a bit weird but can strangely give nice results, and is particularly interesting when you don’t have keys plugged in (e.g. in the park “watching” after your kids).
I’ve honestly never used the built-in sequencer. In general, I don’t use built-in sequencers, with the exception of my Elektrons - I prefer using main sequencer (in this case Push3, previously MPC One). It actually hadn’t even occurred to me that USB power for a battery+ the sequencer would mean the Typhon could be used more or less standalone!
Sure.
Typhon, thanks to its internal sequencer, is a nice standalone nomad synth.
Cool ambiant synth. I have also realised nice techno jam (with no drum machine rythm), just with Typhon, the kick was in my head.
Looking for some opinions / advice.
I run a completely in box set up using Logic Pro on Mac and mainly use Arturia V Collection pls what come with Logic as my sounds library / VST’s.
I’ve been considering for a good while of picking one hardware analog synth to give me that tactile connection and to be able to create my own presets. I make ambient soundscape / dark electronic music and from the research I e done the Typhon seem really cover the range of sounds I’m after from deep aggressive to pads to gentler sounds. It also seems pretty intuitive to use.
Set up wise I’d be powering / midi through usb and having the audio going through my focusrite 2i2. It too fussed about the on board sequencer as I do all that through Logic.
I’ve seen many users have had issues with powering and using midi through the same isb port. I do have an Arturia USB splitter so hope that might help with any issues.
I guess I’m just looking for some feedback on the possible connectivity issues and also how it will fit in sound wise for what I want to use it for.
Working in box never presents any issues and as much as I do want a hardware synth I’m wary of just adding problems to my workflow.
